Si Jiahui
| Born | 11 July 2002 Zhuji,Zhe gian g,China |
|---|---|
| Sport country |  China |
| Professional | 2019–2021, 2022–present |
| Highestranking | 13 (September 2024)[1] |
| Current ranking | 13 (as of 28 October 2024) |
| Maximum breaks | 1 |
| Best ranking finish | Runner-up (x2) |
| Si Jiahui | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Traditional Chinese | Tư giai huy | ||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | Tư giai huy | ||||||||
| |||||||||
Si Jiahui(Chinese:Tư giai huysí-tɕjá-xwéɪ;born 11 July 2002) is a Chinese professionalsnookerplayer. After training at the Wiraka Billiard Academy inFoshan,he moved to the United Kingdom aged 16 and earned a two-year tour card through the2019 Q Schoolfor the2019–20and2020–21seasons. He lost his tour card after ending the 2020–21 season outside the top 64 in theworld rankings,and competed as an amateur during the2021–22 season,during which he defeatedShaun Murphy6–5 in the first round of the2021 UK Championship.After rejoining the professional tour at the start of the2022–23 season,he reached his first ranking quarter-final at the2022 European Masters.
At the2023 World Snooker Championship,Si won three qualifying matches to reach the tournament's final stages at theCrucible Theatrefor the first time. He then defeated Murphy,Robert Milkins,andAnthony McGillas he progressed to the semi-finals, becoming the first Crucible debutant to reach the last four sinceAndy Hicksin1995.Although he led 14–5 in the semi-final, he lost 15–17 to the eventual winnerLuca Brecel;this nine-frame deficit was the largest lead overturned in the history of the World Championship. He advanced from 80th to 36th in the world rankings after the tournament. Si reached the first ranking final of his career at the following season's2024 German Masters,but lost 5–10 toJudd Trump.
On 11 October 2024, Si achieved his firstmaximum breakin professional competition in his 6–2 win against Judd Trump in the semi-final of the2024 Wuhan Open.[2]Si would go on to lose the second ranking final of his career againstXiao Guodong.[3]
Early life
[edit]Born on 11 July 2002,[4]in theDongbaihudistrict ofZhuji,inZhe gian g,Si resided with his parents inHangzhou.[4]He competed intable tennistournaments as a child, winning second place in a school tournament and competing in other tournaments in the city. He became interested in cue sports after his father opened a pool club dedicated toChinese eight-ball.[4]Si showed talent at the sport, and his father pressured him to excel at it. By age 10, Si was practising for 13 hours a day under the supervision of his father and beating all other players at the club.[5]
Si entered anine-balltournament inShanghaifor elementary school students, where he was runner-up.[4]At the tournament, his father met another father whose son was training at a snooker academy inGuangdong.In September 2013, aged 11, Si left school and moved to Guangdong, accompanied by his father, where he began playing snooker.[4]At age 12, he began training at the Wiraka Billiard Academy inFoshan,where he was coached by Roger Leighton.[5]At 14, he defeated former world number oneDing Junhui3–2 in a national tournament.[4][5]
At age 16, Si moved to the United Kingdom. He joined Victoria’s Snooker Academy inSheffield,a stable of mostly Chinese players managed by former snooker journalist Victoria Shi. Other players at the Academy upon Si's arrival includedZhao Xintong,Yan Bingtao,andFan Zhengyi.[5][6]
Career
[edit]Si received a two-year professional tour card through the2019 Q Schoolfor the2019–20and2020–21seasons.[7]However, he was relegated from theWorld Snooker Tourafter finishing the 2020–21 season 92nd in thesnooker world rankings,below the cut-off at 64th position.[8]
Si spent the2021–22 seasoncompeting as an amateur, but earned top-up places in ranking tournaments through his high placement in the2021 Q SchoolOrder of Merit.[9]At the2021 UK Championship,he defeated former world championShaun Murphy6–5 in the first round. In a BBC radio interview after the match, Murphy objected to amateur players featuring in professional events, saying that he had "lost to someone who shouldn’t even be in the building".[9]The World Snooker Tour issued a statement disagreeing with these remarks,[10]and Murphy subsequently apologised for "taking the shine off" Si's win.[11]
Towards the end of the season, Si won the 2022 World Snooker Federation Open amateur event, defeating Lee Stephens 5–0 in the final. This win earned him a two-year professional tour card for the2022–23and2023–24seasons.[12]At the2022 European Masters,he defeatedAnthony McGillandDaniel Wellsto reach his first quarter-final at a ranking event, which he lost 2–5 toKyren Wilson.[13]
Ranked 80th in theworld rankings,he qualified for the main stage of the2023 World Snooker Championshipafter defeatingFlorian Nüßle10–7,Tom Ford10–5, andJordan Brown10–7 in the qualifying rounds.[14]In the first round at theCrucible Theatre,Si defeated Murphy 10–9. On this occasion, Murphy commented on how well Si had played, saying he had been "fabulous".[15]Si defeatedRobert Milkins13–7 in the second round and McGill 13–12 in the quarter-finals,[16][17]becoming the first Crucible debutant to reach the World Championship semi-finals sinceAndy Hicksin1995and the youngest player to do so sinceRonnie O'Sullivanin1996.[18]Si lost 15–17 toLuca Brecelin the semi-finals after Brecel, from 5–14 down, won 12 of the last 13 frames.[19]Si advanced from 80th to 36th in the world rankings as a result of his performance at the tournament.[20]
Si reached the first ranking final of his career at the following season's2024 German Masters,but lost 5–10 toJudd Trump.[21][22]
Personal life
[edit]Si lives in Sheffield during the snooker season. He did not see his family or his girlfriend during theCOVID-19 pandemic;after the2023 Welsh Open,he visited China for the first time in three years.[5]During the 2020–21 season, he dyed his hair blue.[23]
Performance and rankings timeline
[edit]| Tournament | 2016/ 17 |
2017/ 18 |
2018/ 19 |
2019/ 20 |
2020/ 21 |
2021/ 22 |
2022/ 23 |
2023/ 24 |
2024/ 25 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ranking[24] | [nb 1] | [nb 1] | [nb 1] | [nb 2] | 77 | [nb 1] | [nb 2] | 34 | 20 | ||||||
| Ranking tournaments | |||||||||||||||
| Championship League | Non-Ranking Event | RR | RR | RR | 2R | 2R | |||||||||
| Xi'an Grand Prix | Tournament Not Held | 2R | |||||||||||||
| Saudi Arabia Masters | Tournament Not Held | SF | |||||||||||||
| English Open | A | A | A | 4R | 1R | LQ | LQ | 2R | 3R | ||||||
| British Open | Tournament Not Held | 1R | LQ | 2R | 1R | ||||||||||
| Wuhan Open | Tournament Not Held | 2R | F | ||||||||||||
| Northern Ireland Open | A | A | A | 3R | 1R | LQ | 1R | LQ | 1R | ||||||
| International Championship | A | A | A | LQ | Not Held | 1R | |||||||||
| UK Championship | A | A | A | 1R | 1R | 2R | LQ | LQ | |||||||
| Shoot Out | A | A | A | 1R | WD | 1R | 1R | QF | |||||||
| Scottish Open | A | A | A | 2R | 1R | 1R | LQ | 2R | |||||||
| German Masters | A | A | A | LQ | LQ | LQ | 1R | F | |||||||
| Welsh Open | A | A | A | 2R | 2R | 2R | 1R | 2R | |||||||
| World Open | A | A | A | LQ | Not Held | 1R | |||||||||
| World Grand Prix | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | |||||||
| Players Championship | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | |||||||
| Tour Championship | Not Held | A | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | DNQ | ||||||||
| World Championship | A | A | A | LQ | LQ | LQ | SF | 2R | |||||||
| Non-ranking tournaments | |||||||||||||||
| Shanghai Masters | Ranking Event | A | A | Not Held | 1R | QF | |||||||||
| Former ranking tournaments | |||||||||||||||
| Riga Masters | A | A | A | LQ | Tournament Not Held | ||||||||||
| China Championship | NR | A | A | LQ | Tournament Not Held | ||||||||||
| WST Pro Series | Tournament Not Held | RR | Tournament Not Held | ||||||||||||
| Turkish Masters | Tournament Not Held | 3R | Not Held | ||||||||||||
| Gibraltar Open | A | A | A | 1R | 2R | WD | Not Held | ||||||||
| WST Classic | Tournament Not Held | 3R | Not Held | ||||||||||||
| European Masters | A | A | A | LQ | 1R | LQ | QF | 2R | NH | ||||||
| Former non-ranking tournaments | |||||||||||||||
| Six-red World Championship | A | A | A | A | Not Held | LQ | Not Held | ||||||||
| Haining Open | 1R | 1R | 3R | 3R | NH | A | NH | A | NH | ||||||
| Performance Table Legend | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LQ | lost in the qualifying draw | #R | lost in the early rounds of the tournament (WR = Wildcard round, RR = Round robin) |
QF | lost in the quarter-finals |
| SF | lost in the semi-finals | F | lost in the final | W | won the tournament |
| DNQ | did not qualify for the tournament | A | did not participate in the tournament | WD | withdrew from the tournament |
| NH / Not Held | means an event was not held. | |||
| NR / Non-ranking event | means an event is/was no longer a ranking event. | |||
| R / Ranking event | means an event is/was a ranking event. | |||
| MR / Minor-ranking event | means an event is/was a minor-ranking event. | |||
Career finals
[edit]Ranking finals: 2
[edit]| Outcome | No. | Year | Championship | Opponent in the final | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Runner-up | 1. | 2024 | German Masters |  Judd Trump
|
5–10 |
| Runner-up | 2. | 2024 | Wuhan Open | Xiao Guodong
|
7–10 |
Amateur finals: 3 (2 titles)
[edit]| Outcome | No. | Year | Championship | Opponent in the final | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Runner-up | 1. | 2021 | Q Tour – Event 1 | David Lilley
|
1–5 |
| Winner | 1. | 2021 | Q Tour – Event 2 |  Michael White
|
5–4 |
| Winner | 2. | 2022 | WSF Open | Lee Stephens
|
5–0[12] |
References
[edit]- ^"Historic Seedings 2024/2025 After English 2024".snooker.org.Retrieved13 October2024.
- ^"Si fires in maiden maximum".World Snooker Tour.11 October 2024.Archivedfrom the original on 11 October 2024.Retrieved11 October2024.
- ^"Results: Optics Valley of China Wuhan Open".snooker.org.Retrieved12 October2024.
- ^abcdef"Chiết Giang thế giới Snow khắc chức nghiệp đệ nhất nhân, 00 sau tiểu tướng tư giai huy —— mộng tưởng trạm thượng càng cao sân khấu"[No. 1 professional snooker player from Zhe gian g and post-2000 youngster, Si Jiahui—dreams to stand on a higher stage].news.hangzhou.cn.1 April 2021. Archived fromthe originalon 24 April 2023.Retrieved25 April2023.
- ^abcde"Si Jiahui: How bad-tempered child prodigy became snooker's serene sensation".The Independent.28 April 2023.Archivedfrom the original on 1 May 2023.Retrieved29 April2023.
- ^Haigh, Phil (15 March 2022)."The secrets of success at Victoria's Academy - snooker's champion factory".Metro.Retrieved24 August2023.
- ^"Q School Order of Merit".World Snooker.Archived fromthe originalon 31 January 2020.Retrieved13 January2020.
- ^Huart, Matt (12 April 2021)."World Championship 2021: Tour Survival Blog".WPBSA.Archivedfrom the original on 2 December 2022.Retrieved29 April2023.
- ^ab"'It is not fair': Murphy rails at amateurs in pro snooker… after defeat by amateur ".The Guardian.24 November 2021.ISSN0261-3077.Archivedfrom the original on 27 November 2021.Retrieved29 April2023.
- ^"World Snooker rejects Shaun Murphy's amateur complaints".The Irish Times.Retrieved17 May2023.
- ^"Murphy apologises for 'taking shine' off Si Jiahui's victory".BBC Sport.Archivedfrom the original on 28 April 2022.Retrieved29 April2023.
- ^ab"Si Beats Stephens in WSF Open Final".World Snooker Tour.26 February 2022. Archived fromthe originalon 9 March 2022.Retrieved27 February2022.
- ^"Rapid Williams into Semis".19 August 2022. Archived fromthe originalon 22 August 2022.Retrieved28 April2023.
- ^"2023 Cazoo World Championship Qualifiers".wst.tv.World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association.28 March 2023. Archived fromthe originalon 29 April 2023.Retrieved29 April2023.
- ^"Si Jiahui returns to haunt Shaun Murphy in Crucible final-frame upset".The Guardian.20 April 2023.ISSN0261-3077.Archivedfrom the original on 27 April 2023.Retrieved29 April2023.
- ^"Si sees off Milkins to reach Crucible last eight".BBC Sport.Archivedfrom the original on 26 April 2023.Retrieved28 April2023.
- ^"Si Jiahui continues stunning run, reaches snooker World Championship semis".27 April 2023.Archivedfrom the original on 29 April 2023.Retrieved28 April2023.
- ^"Brecel to face Si in semis after stunning O'Sullivan".BBC Sport.Archivedfrom the original on 28 April 2023.Retrieved29 April2023.
- ^"Luca Brecel recovers from 14-5 down to win 17-15 and reach Crucible final".29 April 2023.Archivedfrom the original on 1 May 2023.Retrieved29 April2023.
- ^"Brecel stages greatest Crucible comeback to beat Si".BBC Sport.Archivedfrom the original on 29 April 2023.Retrieved29 April2023.
- ^"Stunning Si Reaches Final".World Snooker Tour.3 February 2024.Retrieved4 February2024.
- ^"German Masters final: Judd Trump beats Si Jiahui to win record third title".BBC Sport.4 February 2024.Retrieved4 February2024.
- ^"Five Facts About Si Jiahui".World Snooker.28 April 2023. Archived fromthe originalon 1 May 2023.Retrieved29 April2023.
- ^"Ranking History".snooker.org.Archivedfrom the original on 19 December 2018.Retrieved17 June2019.
